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Posted: 3/24/2011 6:31:39 PM EDT
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I am new to reloading my .223 and have a few hundred cases i picked up at the range. I have been sorting them into groups of 1.754 and less, .755-.765, and over .766.
I plan on trimming the .766 and over pile back to .750, but my question is should I be holding a tighter tolerance then 1.755-1.765? I am just target shooting right now not anything serious but I do like a tight group. I am shooting a 20 bull barrel 1in 8 twist AR. been shooting 55g vmax and 69g nosler hp I have been doing a light crimp with lee pacesetter dies Thanks for any help |
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Max case length for 223 is 1.760. Anything longer needs to be trimmed.
I would trim any brass over 1.755 myself. If you seat bullets and crimp in the same die, the cases all have to be very close to the same length, or you will crush shoulders on the long cases. Reread the loading info in your reloading manual. Especially the max case length. Good luck, and welcome to the Forum. |
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ME.........
I trim to MY "standard length." For my .223 Rem it's 1.75". That's what I cut it to, with my once fired brass. Then, after each firing they get done again at 1.75". Thus, a production machine (i.e. my Gracey) is a great help. "Uniformity breeds accuracy." (not to mention...........for the sake of the crimp IF, you're going to crimp). Of course there are other trimmer brands/methods you could choose and it's your choice what you will call your standard length. Then again............for plinkers, I might skip trimming for every reload (assuming they are still under the max length). Aloha, Mark |
| I've taken to locking my calipers down at around 1.755" and running my cases through that. Everything over gets trimmed back to 1.750". As I find myself shooting more brass that I've processed before, as opposed to range pick-ups, the pile that doesn't need to be trimmed for every loading seems to get bigger, which is nice. |
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Ok i have a new problem/ question. I use a rcbs hand trimmer and was moving right along with my to long pile, when about 150 rounds into the job it quit cutting.
Seemed like the cutter bit dulled out already. I am 100% sure no steel case was trimmed if that matters. How long should the bit last and what could I have done to kill it already? |
I have trimmed around 10k with my trimmer. Same as yours but with a motor. Still cutting fine. First check and see if a ring of brass is stuck on the cutter. Remove the pilot and clean the cutter with a soft brush. (old tooth brush) Could be a simple build up of chips. Also make sure the trimmer stop has not slipped, and is keeping the cutter away from the case. If that's not it, you could have a defective cutter. Call RCBS 1-800-553-5000 on Monday, they will probably send you a new cutter for free. |
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